Leafy Purple Lettuce Identification

The days of boring lettuce (Lactuca sativa) are over. With the rise of the farmers market, brand new dramatic purple grasses varieties are showing up. Identifying the exact variety is not always easy, but with a small studying you can identify different kinds of leafy greens predicated on head shape, leaf arrangement and leaf shape even when they all have purple leaves. Lettuce is just as an yearly leafy crop.

Common Lettuce Varieties

Crisphead (Lactuca sativa L., var capitata), romaine, also referred to as cos (Lactuca sativa, var longifolia), butterhead (Lactuca sativa, var capitata), leaf and looseleaf lettuce (Lactuca sativa, var crispa), comes in an array of cultivars — some braided curly leaves or apartment, creamy white hearts, others splashed with maroon, and perhaps most striking, some with leaves of deep purple. Beyond colour, taste plays a role in lettuce selection. Looseleaf lettuce, available in green or purple hues, has a mild taste in comparison to the sweet crunch of romaine or the taste of butterhead lettuce.

Identifying Purple Lettuce

To recognize a head of leafy purple broth, look at the contour. A head of lettuce with big floppy purple or red leaves held loosely together at the base is owned by the loose leaf lettuce range. It it’s a tight, erect growth and cylindrical shape it is most likely romaine. Butterhead lettuce cultivars have tight head contour at the center and floppy upper leaves. When they show colour, it looks on upper half of their leaves or at massive speckles. Crisphead lettuce, like Slide, includes a tight around head. Purple cultivars of the romaine and crisphead lettuce are available but not typical.

Purple Loose Leaf Cultivars

The expression purple broth and red lettuce are used interchangeably to describe the dark wine-colored leaves. A striking deep purple looseleaf lettuce to try is “Ruby”, a cultivar with gently ruffled edges. The cultivar “Red Fire” has frilly edges and lighter shade than “Ruby”. For a really striking jar green and edible garden decorative, attempt “Merlot”. Like the wine of the same title, this lettuce cultivar has slightly ruffled dark purple outer leaves and lighter purple red center leaves. “Cracoviensis” looseleaf lettuce has green leaves flecked with purple accents.

The Growing Season

Even though a few of the more common purple broth varieties show up in the market, the exotic and striking ones are harder to find.The ideal method to receive a wide variety of colorful lettuce is to develop it yourself. Grow lettuce during the cool months in late fall, winter and early spring in mild Mediterranean climates and coastal areas. You can harvest early salad greens in as few as 30 days following planting and mature heads in 58 to 60 days. Keep the soil moist through the growing season and pick of any slugs and snails by hand.